UW-Madison seeks exemption from open-records law

12:46 PM,
May 24, 2013

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The University of Wisconsin-Madison is asking state lawmakers for an exemption from the state's open-records law that would allow it to keep research data private until the information is published or patented.

The school cites a change in federal law that could potentially allow a rival to learn about its research through an open-records request and then file for a patent first, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported. But advocates of transparent government say current law already allows UW to deny requests if it can cite a legitimate reason to do so.